Naomi almost bumped into General Serator. Both of them appeared on the surface one after another.

  “I’m sorry, General. I wasn’t paying attention.” She apologized. “Also, where are the rest of the expedition? Something happened?”

  “Everything is in order, Dungeon Mistress. We reached the fourteenth floor as planned. However, after we found your newest golem, I decided to return. I’ve a lot of questions.”

  “Are you talking about elephants by chance?”

  “Yes, Dungeon Mistress.”

  “Them huh. Ok, let’s walk and talk. I will take you to the western gate. I bet you are tired.”

  “Not too much, Dungeon Mistress. But thank you for your consideration.”

  “So, General, what do you want to know?”

  “The most important question is: can we build them?”

  “Yes.” Naomi firmly answered. “I make sure that every part and whole construction doesn’t require special knowledge, rare skills, or magic. They can help, but aren’t necessary. Only the whole size can be a problem.”

  “So it is a real war golem then.”

  “It's not a golem. I throw away that part too. You will need someone to steer it.”

  “The helmsman seat.” Serator understood.

  “Helmsman? Oh, right, I used the stirling wheel. Yes, I like it.”

  “If this elephant is more like a carriage, Dungeon Mistress, why don’t you build one similar to those that exist?”

  “I did that. But they turn out to be too complicated to build, and in my opinion, when swarmed by undead, they could be easily destroyed. My elephants, however, are so tall that they can walk over them, and safely deliver food and other supplies to the besieged city or castle.”

  “So they are for caring goods, not the troops, or to attack necromancers?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. From my perspective, they are too slow, and you will need a lot of them for a real battle. And I bet you and your officers, not to mention adventurers, will find a lot of ways to stop them from advancing. But for something smaller, like breaking through enemy lines to deliver supplies or evacuating the wounded, then maybe. A crew needs to be a minimum of two people. One is the helmsman, and the other is an assistant who makes sure the machine is working properly. There is a lot of space, so maybe you will be able to squeeze a mage or two and still have a lot of food in the cargo hold.”

  “And mages will provide protection, but also could attack undead and necromancers.” General finished. “Yes, I see where the problem lies. Normal armies with a competent commander will find a way to counter or outmaneuver your brass elephants. But with the undead and necromancers, we could have a chance. They aren’t known for their competency.”

  “That was the idea. But like I said. I honestly don’t know how helpful brass elephants will be.”

  “Yes. Thank you for a walk, Dungeon Mistress.” He said when they reached the gate.

  “I also thank you for the walk. But before you go, General, can I ask you for a small favor? It’s nothing big, I could call someone else for that, if you are too tired.”

  “Dungeon Mistress, you are still thinking in your old world terms.” Serator gently smiled. “People living here are used to working a whole day. Our bodies are strong with plenty of stamina. Over the last few hours, I just walked and did nothing. It was enough to rest from the battles ot the thirteenth floor.”

  “You are probably right,” Naomi answered. “So the thing is simple and takes only a few moments. Please take this box outside the dungeon, and then open it. I will be standing at the entrance.”

  “Understood.” He took one box and stepped outside. Guardsmen at the gate move away on his signal. General didn’t know what Dungeon Mistress was trying to do, and he was sure of the loyalty of his men, but fewer witnesses means less chance of the news spreading. When he opened the box, he was sure it was a good idea. Inside was an intricate array of unknown purpose. “I’m ready, Dungeon Mistress.”

  “Then, let’s start. Please tell me if you see any changes.”

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  “Yes. There is a red mana stone that started shining, and I hear a bell.” He answered. “And now it stopped.”

  “Good. Now, please push some mana inside the array until the blue mana stone starts shining.”

  He gently connects his mana with the artifact.

  “It works!” He heard the laughter of the Dungeon Mistress. His mind started racing. Did she manage to create an artifact to send messages over distances? “General, please don’t be startled by what would happen next. Also, inform me of how much mana it takes.” She takes a deep breath and pushes her own mana into her array. The General was glad she warned him. An image of the Dungeon Mistress appeared above the magic array, looking exactly as she does now. Most importantly, it moves and talks.

  He breaks his connection to the artifact and returns it.

  “Something happened, General?” Naomi looked seriously at his stern face.

  “Dungeon Mistress, while I don’t have the right to do that, still I must insist you hide this artifact.”

  “No problem. Gods already give me detailed instructions. I can only lend it for a short time necessary to talk with someone outside the dungeon when he can’t come to me, or he can’t bring something he needs to show me. I can’t make it a reward or explain how I make it. You will need to guess how it works.”

  “Thank you, Dungeon Mistress. Do you have plans for tonight? The rest of the leaders need to be informed about this artifact.”

  “I don’t have anything planned for tonight. I will reserve my forge on the fifth floor for a private meeting.”

  “Thank you, Dungeon Mistress.”

  “So, General, please tell us what our dear Dungeon Lady did this time to upset you so much,” Eriser asked when all grand priests, adventurers guild master, and grand master Unroh gathered. General Serator placed even a paladin outside the doors to stop anyone accidentally barging in, while they were talking.

  “There are two topics I want to discuss. The first one needs your Grand Forge Master expertise. Dungeon Mistress, can you describe it in detail? It will be easier to judge the feasibility of building it.” The General asked Naomi.

  “Certainly.” She began describing brass elephants with every detail she could. To show them how it looks, she even used illusion magic.

  “Grand Forge Master, what is your opinion?” The General asked when Naomi finished.

  “We will need to redirect people from every other work to be able to do it. We lack skilled workers, craftsmen, and blacksmiths. Also, our smelter girl is swamped with work. Thankfully, she has already expanded her foundry, and she has two furnaces. She only needs a skilful smelter or two to run both of them at once.”

  “Then both of us need to discuss this matter further. We need to be ready, in case the north calls for reinforcements. Those elephants could help immensely with the war effort.” Serator decided.

  “I also like the perspective to send those beasts to show those bastards what I think about them,” Eriser answered. “What a shame I don’t have time to go to the fourteenth floor and see them.”

  “What about the second topic?” Minotaur Grand Priest asked.

  “Dungeon Mistress, could you show them your artifacts?” The general asked.

  “Yes.” She opened the big chest, took out two wooden boxes, and placed them on the table. One next to the halfling artificer, and the second close to the Pinera.

  “You can open them.” She encouraged them.

  The room was filled with gasps of amazement and praise in Naomi’s direction.

  “Splendid work, Dungeon Mistress. An array on the grand master level, no doubt. And it’s not a dungeon creation, also, you build two of them.” The Grand Master Unroh said.

  “Nah, I needed to spend a whole day with a ruler and a compass to trace the lines. I can’t do it by hand.” Naomi blushed, embarrassed.

  “Those are just tools that need to be guided by your hands, Dungeon Mistress. There are no tools that can replace someone's skills.” The Grand Forge Master said.

  “Dungeon Mistress, I can only understand fragments of the array. Please tell us the purpose of this artifact.” Halfling artificer pleaded.

  “I will show you. Grand Master and Grand Priestess, please connect your mana with the artifact. Blue mana stone should shine.” Both confirmed they managed to do that. “Now, Grand Master, please concentrate your thoughts so that you want to speak with the Grand Priestess here.”

  After a moment, a connection was made, and all gathered saw images of both of them. There was silence in the workshop.

  “Dungeon Mistress, how did you do that?” Halfling Grand Master asked. “Your college, dungeon master from the City of Adventurers, put a one-hundred gold reward for someone able to build it. Until today, we haven't even come close to achieving something like this. We only managed to build a telegraph, but the cost of making enough enchanted copper wire makes it useless. I heard one or two kings or dukes installed them in their castles or mansions.”

  “I can’t say anything about them. I’m only allowed to show them to you. You have to figure out for yourself how this artifact works. I can only say that I don’t know its range, and I need to build the third one to test how well switching between destinations works. Also, I don’t know if there is a way to hijack the message, or jam it.”

  “Jam it? Yes, it’s definitely possible. While I can’t tell details, it’s obvious that it uses mana to send a message. A strong enough mana field can do that.” Grand Master Unroh nodded.

  “That is one more reason to keep knowledge about this artifact secret. The longer the cultists don't know about his existence, the greater the advantage we will gain.” The General said. “Grand Master. How much time do you need to recreate the Dungeon Mistress artifact?”

  “That depends on how much time I can spend on using it and observing.” All looked at Naomi.

  “Well, I need to test it rigorously to see what needs to be improved. So the help of Grand Master Unroh will be invaluable for that.” Naomi answered.

  “Then I will assign guards for both of you to ensure no one will bother you during your work.” Serator decided.